Isthmus Relations

It has been awhile since I've written without the assistance of a fascinating oral history interview. Now that I have been away from El Salvador for a few months, it is much easier to view my research with a more critical eye.

As I delve into my graduate work, I realize that this interest in the Central American Jewry extends beyond El Salvador. Costa Rica and Panama would culminate in a trio of phenomenal comparative study. Panama with its strong Sephardic and Ashkenaz populations and Costa Rica with its Eastern European core and now growing religiously progressive population. Amongst these three countries, El Salvador remains the most integrated (amongst Jews). Although my research in Costa Rica and Panama is only in preliminary stages, I hope to be able to report back about Costa Rica's Eastern European shtetl origins in the coming weeks.

For now, news from El Salvador is grim with crime escalating and people taking justice and security "into their own hands." The Jewish community just finished celebrating Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). Let's hope that the domestic situation improves....somehow.